Outdoor activities utilizing a motor vehicle involve many millions of people all over the world. Camping, sports activities, swimming, etc., oftentimes require the need to shield individuals from sun or rain in close proximity to a motor vehicle. Awning assemblies are oftentimes used in connection with trailers or recreational vehicles. For example, a type of side-mounted awning is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,510, Hayward. Rear-moounted, collapsible shelters of a tent-like character are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,020,919, Krump, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,486,513, Fulsebakke. A tent for a reardoor vehicle is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,746,386, Woodward. U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,977, Hardinge, also shows a collapsible shelter attached to the rear of a vehicle.
None of the above references disclose a cantilevered awning arrangement which is supported only by the bumper and wheel wells of the vehicle and which may be readily assembled or disassembled for transportation within the vehicle or its trunk and which may be attached to any of the five currently existing bumper configurations of existing established motor vehicles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,200,115, Parker, discloses a side-mounted cantilevered awning which is supported by members which are held in place by placing them beneath the motor vehicle's wheels. Thus, this awning is not attached to the vehicle but merely held in a cantilevered position by means of the weight of the vehicle itself.
A number of devices exist for carrying objects or supporting objects utilizing the bumper of a vehicle such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,379,994, Schwinn, U.S. Pat. No. 2,415,286, Hyde, U.S. Pat. No. 2,762,542, Hodgeman, U.S. Pat. No. 3,877,622, McLain, U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,132, Chandler, U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,787, Gothrup, U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,195, Collins, U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,501, Graber, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,161,973, Hastings. While these devices fit specific bumper configurations, none of them are adaptable to fit all of the five established bumper configurations in use.